May 13th

Okay taking a second kick at this, didn’t save my progress and the power blacked out, go figure. Still listening to the Dixie chicks though, one of my co-workers Sadia loves them, it’s a nice shot of home (even though I’ve never listened to them before and the music is pretty depressing!)
So a lot has happened since the last time I posted, my apologies to the audience. I arrived in Accra on the 7th in the evening, crashed at a guest house and then caught a 12+ hour bus ride up to the northern region capital of Tamale the next morning. Once in Tamale, we caught some acclimatization time and in country training from the Ghana LTOV’s (long term volunteers) for 2 days, and then split apart to head to our individual placements. While Tamale has a number of internet cafes, it also is subject to nation wide rolling blackouts which knock out the power for days at a time as part of a governmental initiative to conserve power during the dry season, which thankfully has ended while we have been here. The way it ended was dramatic to say the least; even growing up on the prairies I haven’t experienced a storm like that for some time. Imagine most dense and forceful rain you can imagine, silhouette it against a black African sky, have it slamming down on the tin roofs of the city and you’ll get a rough picture of what it was like.
My first day with the Africa 2000 Network, went fairly well, I was picked up at the hotel by the driver Mr. Tahinru and taken to the office where I met three of my co-workers, Latifah, Sadia, and Shabani. The later two are members of what is called the National Service Program, where in educated young people volunteer for various organizations in an effort to gain the experience necessary to compete in the small and competitive job market. Everyone is exceptionally friendly, but the pace of things is very different. Having nothing to do for days seems to be an accepted practice, which for me is troublesome since I need to be in constant motion when at work. Also the hierarchies that are present within the office are more blatant than I ever would have expected. Mr. Tahinru dominates based largely on his age and gender, thought he is a relative of the founder of the organization Madame. Adisa, and the woman frequently will defer to the men, particularly when it comes to cleaning up the office as well as after meals. I’m happy to say though that after my initial surprise I’ve been throwing a wrench in their patriarchal ways, by insisting on doing my own dishes, cleaning, getting water etc….
In terms of the work I’ve been doing, the majority of this first week has been spent familiarizing myself with the process of shea butter refinement and the marketing of its products. To that end I visited the processing center in Saginaru, which is essentially a suburb (but in a geographic not wealth way) of Tamale, to observe the women mixing the various oils and caustic soda together to make the liquid soap. In a few days, after the soap has hardened in the molds, I hope to return to the center so that I can observe the cutting and packaging process.
After looking through all the reports, talking with those responsible for the project at A2N, and consulting with the head of the emerging shea producers association, Madame Safia, we hit upon the marketing and branding of the product as the major obstacle to creating a sustainable local demand. So I’ve been trying to wrap my head around that one, and actually I am just about to step into a meeting with the executive of the association to pitch my rough idea, so wish me luck and I’ll post more on the outcome.
My office should be getting internet access by early next week, or at least that’s what everyone says, so I should be throwing up a post on the village I’m living in, which is pretty barebones….plus a got a video of a sweet drum/chanting circle!
Hope all is well back home, keep the comments coming, ask for details about anything I mention, and pass along this blog address to all those you think might be interested.

Cheers,

Henry